District 1
Two "Bear" Goldstein
District 1 is unusually rainy today as we walk toward Town Square for the Reapings. Despite the bad weather, we're still expected to dress up, so my sister Forest and I are huddled under an umbrella, desperately trying to keep our formal clothes dry. After our parents died, we've had to buy all of our clothes ourselves. I don't want my hard-earned money wasted on a suit destroyed by rain on its first use.
"Jesus, it's freezing!" Forest complains, arms tightly wrapped around her. I carefully reposition the umbrella so it's protecting her a bit more. "I can't understand how Four doesn't use an umbrella."
"It's good practice for the Hunger Games!" Four shouts from up ahead, his button-up shirt and slacks absolutely soaked by the rainfall. "When I volunteer and I'm thrown in that arena, I won't have access to any umbrella," he sneers. "I need to mentally prepare myself.'
"By getting hypothermia?" Forest asks, earning a glare from Four.
My siblings and I have some odd names. Our parents were Hunger Games fanatics who wished to raise kids to volunteer for the Hunger Games. They adopted a bunch of us from District 1's community home when we were very young and trained us for the Hunger Games. They also renamed us after numbers in the order we were adopted; One, Two (me), and so on. That's why I'm stuck with the stupid name of "Two".
Forest and I decided when we were twelve and eight or so that being named after a number was demeaning, so we decided to come up with nicknames for each other. I called Forest (then Five) "Forest", because she has these nice forest-green eyes. She called me "Bear". I think it was supposed to be a bit ironic since I was a small kid at the time. I'm currently pretty tall, but my growth spurt was later than most (a fact which Forest will not let me live down).
We call each other Bear and Forest, but pretty much everyone else calls me Two. My only other friend besides Forest, Velvetine, also calls me Bear, but I think that's about it.
"You don't have to volunteer, you know," Forest says quietly as we approach the check-in.
"Huh?" I ask. It's hard to hear her over the rain, so for a second, I think I misheard her.
"It's optional. Blade and Sparkle aren't alive anymore, so there are no consequences if you don't volunteer," she reminds me. I gulp nervously. To be honest, I never considered not volunteering - having this reminder sprung upon me now is freaking me out a bit. Our parents, Blade and Sparkle, had pretty much convinced all of us that the only point to life was volunteering - to the point where none of us even considered the possibility of not volunteering. Except for Forest, I guess.
"I don't know," I mumble, following the line as it moves forward.
"The Hunger Games are terrible!" Forest whispers, gaining a bit of passion. "It's just kids killing each other. No one ever comes out happy! You're either dead or traumatized - is that what you want?"
"Uh…" I begin. I don't know what to say. Forest is making sense, but will I really be happy if I don't volunteer? This has what my life has led up to. If I don't go through with it, what is the point of my life?
Before I can respond, the Peacekeeper says, "next", and I realize it's my turn. Still unsure of what to do, I step forward and allow her to roughly grab my pointer fingers. I glance back at Forest, who's watching me nervously. There's a sharp pain as the needle is jammed into my calloused finger, but it quickly passes. A moment later, I hear the electronic scanner say, "Two Goldstein," and the Peacekeeper waves me past.
Two. So inhumane. Just a number.
I wait for Forest as she gets checked in, and she quickly joins me. She's a lot less upbeat now that's she said her point, and walks next to me in silence. When she reaches the fourteen-year-old section and I'm about to move on, she grabs my sleeve to hold me back.
"Are you going to go through with it?" she asks.
"I… I'm the chosen Volunteer," I remind her, scratching the back of my neck.
"So? You can still choose not to volunteer. All you have to do is stay silent."
"Well… I get fined if I don't go through with it. The academy fines us when we don't volunteer," I remind her.
"But not when someone takes your place. I'm sure plenty of other kids are dying to volunteer. Just… stay silent and let some other kid volunteer. Then act all mad that he took your spot. They won't fine you," she suggests.
"Maybe," I sigh. She gives me a knowing look before slinking into the fourteen-year-old girl's section. Walking to the eighteen-year-old's section, I quickly close my umbrella. We were told they're not allowed to be open during the Reapings since there's not enough space and it will make it difficult to see the stage - a fair rule, but it will make the next half hour miserable.
I find the eighteen-year-old's section and squeeze in. I wish I were friends with some boys my age. I don't like standing alone here - it makes me uncomfortable to be surrounded by all of these guys I don't know.
Since it's almost time for the Reaping to begin, the stage is packed. Our Victors sit in a line along the back, all the way from Estella Blake (Victor of the 182nd Hunger Games) to Cecelia Hart, our most recent Victor. The stage has been protected by some sort of plastic tent roof, so none are very wet. However, none look very happy to be here.
Our escort, Astria Mebliss, scurries out to the microphone. Despite the fact she's protected from the rain, she's dressed in a bright pink poncho.
"Welcome, District 1!" she announces in her usual chipper voice. "It's quite a terrible day, isn't it? Because of the weather, the film has been canceled. Sadly, we won't get to see President Divine remind us of the Hunger Games' true meaning."
"Oh no," the boy to my right mutters sarcastically.
"We still have to go over your wonderful Victors, so let's get this over with." Astria begins to list off our current mentors at an impressive speed, getting through in less than a minute, despite the vast number of Victors lined up behind her. When she's done she breathes a sigh of relief. "Now, let's see who our female tribute will be."
Astria walks over to the female's bowl. Luckily, she doesn't bother with all of the dramatic anticipation this time. Instead, she simply plucks a single piece of paper out of the bowl. It's not like whoever's name is on there will end up being the tribute, anyway. She carries the paper back over to the mic and quickly opens it.
"Ottilie Louboutin," she reads. She allows a second to pass before asking for Volunteers. Technically, she's supposed to wait until the chosen tribute is on stage before asking for Volunteers, but since we all know someone will take their place, it's kind of a waste of time. "Any Volunteers?" she asks.
"I volunteer!" someone shouts. Everyone looks for this year's tribute and we eventually see her emerge from the eighteen-year-old's section. I've heard that the female Volunteer this year is someone named Mirage Fairchild. She's vaguely familiar, but I don't think I've met her before. Despite this, I can confirm that the girl currently rushing up to the stage is indeed Mirage Fairchild.
She's fairly short; at least a foot less than me, maybe more, and has long, wavy, platinum hair. She doesn't look overly strong, but I'm sure she has other talents. The academy must have had good reasons for choosing her as the Volunteer; she had some tough competition.
Mirage takes her place next to Astria, who asks her name.
"I'm Mirage Fairchild. But you can call me Mira," she winks - at who, I don't know. Mira giggles in an obnoxiously sweet way, which gets Astria to smile. At the very least, Mira will get along with all of the escorts.
"Let's see the boys now!" Astria suggests, and goes over to the male's bowl. She carelessly chooses a slip of paper before returning to Mira. "And the male is… Achilles Clash! Are there any Volunteers?"
My mouth goes dry.
This is my chance, isn't it? A chance to prove I'm not worthless. A chance to give my life meaning. My body seems paralyzed as I'm stuck at crossroads for what to do. The Town Square is silent as they wait for someone to Volunteer. Waiting for me to Volunteer.
"Really? No Volunteers?" Astria says nervously, her eyes darting around the square.
"I Volunteer!" I blurt out, pushing my way to the front of the crowd. Astria looks at me with a hungry grin, much too relieved that she got another Volunteer. With my heart pounding, I climb to the front of the stage.
"And what's your name?" Astria asks, jamming the microphone in my face.
"Uh… Two Goldstein," I say, my face turning red. I'm surprised I didn't tell her to call me Bear. I could add it in now, but she's already taking the microphone away.
"Well, District 1, these are your tributes for the 249th Hunger Games: Mirage Fairchild and Two Goldstein! Let's hope for a repeat Victory!" she announces. The crowd claps politely as she ushers us into the Justice Building.
My stomach drops when I realize what I've done. Will this be worth it?
District 1
Mirage Fairchild
As Astria steers Two and I into the Justice Building, my smile begins to fade a bit. I end up playing with a loose string on my dress to keep calm. My eyes quickly dart to Two, who is staring straight ahead with a stony look on his face. I can't tell if he's trustworthy yet. I hope he is. I don't want to be alone in this.
One of the Peacekeepers flanking us rests his hand on my shoulder to steer me into a separate room. This must be where I say goodbye to my family and friends. The Peacekeeper opens the door for me and I step inside; the door immediately shuts behind me.
The lavish room is not something I'm unfamiliar with. My own home is filled with expensive furniture such as this, which I used to enjoy. Now, it's something that I hardly care about.
I take a seat on the plush sofa, awaiting my guests. I hope my mother isn't too upset that I'm Volunteering. She hasn't shown it much in recent years, but I know she loves me and she must be worried sick right now. I nervously draw shapes on the velvet cushion as I imagine what she'll say - will she be mad or scared? Probably a bit of both. I do hope she's proud of me, though. I know she'll be proud if I win, but she might think this was a stupid and reckless choice at the moment. I don't think she knew I was the chosen Volunteer.
The door opens and I leap to my feet, expecting my mother. Instead, I'm greeted by the familiar site of Utopia, our family maid. Utopia is one of my closest friends, and she's definitely like a second mother to me. Even Mom trusts her, which is more than anyone else can say.
"Mira, why did you go through with it?" Utopia says as she rushes over to me, her arms outstretched. I immediately allow myself to fall into her hug.
"You know why," I say. To my surprise, I'm starting to get a bit emotional. "I want to make Mom proud."
"You have to be careful," Utopia whispers. "The games can be dangerous - both mentally and physically. I don't want you to get hurt."
"Neither do I, but…" I begin, but my voice trails off. My mouth is beginning to feel dry. "I just… I need Mom to be proud of me."
"I'm sure she will be," Utopia says after a moment. "Just, stay strong, alright?"
"Okay," I whisper. I jump when the door is slammed open.
"Time's up," a Peacekeeper announces. Utopia gives me one last hug before leaving. The door closes and I'm alone again. I sit back down, not knowing how much longer it will be until my next guest arrives. I'm not expecting too many people - most of my friends aren't really my friends - they use me as much as I use them, but the lack of emotional connection likely means they won't bother visiting me.
As for my Dad, I have no idea who he is. Mom has me tell people he's a businessman named Lux who's always working, but in honesty, it's just Mom and me at home. There was a time when Mom had plenty of suitors, but none of them stayed when she got pregnant with me. Mom worries that if people know it's just me and her, the image of a "perfect family" that she's taken such efforts to cultivate will be sullied.
After several more minutes, I begin playing with the loose thread on my dress again. I keep one eye aimed at the door, knowing Mom would be upset if she saw me "destructing" my clothes. But the door remains closed, for far longer than I'm comfortable with. I'm beginning to get anxious when the door finally opens.
It's Astria Mebliss. My eyebrows knot in confusion as I walk over to her.
"Is visiting over?" I ask, even more perplexed when she nods. "What about my Mom?"
Astria shrugs, and I feel my heart drop. Where's my Mom? Why wouldn't she visit me? She's been distant, but I would have thought she'd at least say goodbye to me. As I follow Astria out of the room, I snap the string off my dress.
Our first two tributes for Feathers! I'm still not super pleased with this chapter, but I feel like it's a good enough introduction for now. Of course, all of the tributes this year are very complex so I doubt I can fully introduce them in the Reaping. Hopefully, this gave you a good enough sense of how you feel about Mira and Bear.
I'm not doing sponsorships this time, since I feel like it's too hard to keep track of, but reviews will help your tribute stay alive, so please do so! Let me know what you thought of these two and how far you think they'll go (based on what you know so far because it's obviously not a lot).
Thank you to Sushii-Chu for Mirage and TacoPhoenix88 for Bear! I love both of them so much and I have big plans for them XD.
- Lilah
